The pair of Dynaudio Audience 82s arrived in the middle
of the first round of the 2003 NBA playoffs . . . the big game that night
pitted the Minnesota Timberwolves against the Los Angeles Lakers. I
was expecting a few friends over to watch the game, so I wanted to set up
the speakers as quickly as possible. I always wonder with amusement how long
it will take one of my friends to exclaim, “New speakers again!?”

The speakers came double-boxed and are designed to be opened on the long
side. One would think this would make it easier to un-box the speakers, but
I didn’t find this to be the case. I much prefer to cut the bottom open,
spread the flaps, turn the speaker upright, and pull the box off the top. I
realize I may be exposing my ignorance as to the advantage of the Dynaudio
(and JM Lab, if memory serves) packing method, but combined with another
packaging choice, it made removing the speakers from their boxes
problematic.

Instead of Styrofoam or some other variation of
plastic, Dynaudio uses a foam rubber material for those top and bottom caps
that the speakers rest in, inside the box. Rubber and cardboard create just
enough friction to make the 55 pound speaker’s walking or sliding from the
box more trouble than one would like.

Additionally, you cannot grab the cap and help it out
because it will just stretch in your hand, and the speaker will not come
with it. I know what you’re saying. Criticizing this is pretty lame. How
many times is one going to un-box the speakers? Fair enough, but many weeks
later, getting them back into the box proved even more difficult and
frustrating. I mention this only because of the fact that I’ve handled
speakers considerably heavier than this with much less difficulty. On the
other hand, there was nary a scratch on the enclosures, and that is what
Dynaudio wants from all this complex packaging.

My guests arrived while I was still in the process of
setting the speakers up. The game had begun. My reference set-up includes a
Tact M2150 Digital Integrated Amplifier, a pair of Revel F30 speakers, a
Philips DVD963SA DVD player, and speaker and interconnect cables by Analysis
Plus. In the absence of any strong objections, I decided to switch the
speakers in the middle of the first quarter. I moved the Revels out of the
way and walked the 82s into place. A minute later, the audio was back.

The Design

Physically, the Dynaudio 82 is a much smaller speaker
than the Revel F30. The pair I received was finished in a beautiful real
wood Cherry veneer (Audience 82s were only recently made available in real
wood veneers). It features a matte silver front baffle, which gives the
conservative-looking speaker a clean, modern appearance. The plinth on the
bottom adds to the elegance. The 82s feature a six-inch midrange and dual
eight-inch woofers. The one-inch soft-dome tweeter, according to Dynaudio, “
. . . is an improved, customized version that incorporates many of the
features of Dynaudio's renowned D260 ESOTEC tweeter. With a 4 mm die-cast
front for maximum stiffness, along with a vented pole piece and rear chamber
for excellent transient response, the tweeter also utilizes magnetic fluid
for exceptional power handling and damping.” Anyone familiar with high-end
audio knows that Dynaudio drivers are very well regarded, showing up in a
large number of other manufacturers' designs. Frequency response is
specified at 26 Hz - 21 kHz. Sensitivity is rated at 87 dB and impedance at
4 ohms. As with all Dynaudios, they are not bi-wireable. For more in-depth
technical information, a visit to Dynaudio’s excellent website should prove
satisfactory.

The Sound

My immediate impression was that once the 82s were on,
the sound became “small.” I have an entry-level Hughes DirecTV receiver
running a left and right analog signal into the Tact. In general, the audio
portion of broadcast television leaves a lot to be desired. The accuracy of
the 82s could be considered a weakness in this area versus a more
full-bodied sounding speaker. This should certainly be taken into account
when considering these speakers for your home for the very reason that you
are unlikely to demo them with this sort of material. My advice is to
access which sources see the most action in your set-up and buy the
speakers which do the most things “right” to your ears. Even though I have
friends who would never give up the resolution and “wow” factor their system
provides on a just a handful of CDs, for most people their entertainment
system needs to be a bit more multi-dimensional.

During the fourth quarter of the game, Minnesota did
not look to be getting their act together, so one of my friends suggested we
play some basketball on the Xbox. I surprised everyone by putting on the new
NBA Street Vol. 2 instead of the usual NBA Live 2003. I have the Advanced
A/V pack for the Xbox, which allows me to take the digital signal out via
Toslink into the Tact. The game features a great hip-hop soundtrack and we
were all impressed the moment the menu came up and the music began. I didn’t
want to drop my controller lest it be snatched up and I lose my turn, so I
had to confine myself to a mental note of what great presence and speed the
speakers had.

Once you get the hang of the game, which rewards
over-the-top street ball moves, you will accumulate “gamebreaker” points.
Once a gamebreaker is activated, a cut-scene is cued based on the move you
initiated immediately before it, and as your player climbs into the sky for
a physics-defying dunk or shot, the other team’s players are powerless to
defend you. The audio portion of this sequence demonstrated another quality,
which the 82s possess. Because time slows down in the sequence and the music
is silenced, the audio consists solely of outdoor ambience. At one point,
you will hear a bird squawk (ostensibly because you are so high in the air).
Now I’m not going to say that I felt like I was 30 feet off the ground
soaring to the hoop, but the speakers certainly got that idea across and
aren’t nuances what we all appreciate in high resolution equipment? I played
a good variety of games throughout the time I lived with the 82s, and
subtleties like this were appreciated time and time again.

My DVD viewing requirements are fairly simple. If I can
understand the dialogue, to a large extent, the system has done its job.
Whether I actually buy into the story or the characters constitutes the
magic of cinema and cannot be blamed on, or credited solely to equipment.
The 82s allowed this magic to happen or not precisely because they did not
interfere with or obscure what was happening on screen. In many ways, they
enlightened what I was seeing. Although I feel somewhat ambivalent while
recalling the experience of watching DVDs on this system, it is only because
the movies I watched were unremarkable. The Dynaudios allowed me to focus on
what was being played rather than what it was being played on. My memory
consists of the movies themselves and not the equipment. The 82s do a great
job of getting out of the way, and I feel they serve DVD viewing extremely
well. In other words, they were tonally neutral, rather than bassy, or
midrange bloomy, or tizzy.

A few weeks into my time with the 82s, I once again
found myself watching NBA playoff basketball. I don’t recall which game, but
I remember walking into my kitchen at some point during a timeout. I was
grabbing some food when I heard a distinct “click.” Besides living in a very
bustling part of Los Angeles, my house backs up to an alley and the 24-hour
ambience is something I am sure all big-city residents are familiar with.
This was, however, a sound I had not yet heard before and it was definitely
localized toward the front of my house, not the rear, so I was curious. As I
walked back to the living room, I noticed the commercial playing on screen.
“The Perfect Club is the most versatile club ever made. It replaces your
utility clubs, 5 & 7 woods and your longest irons. It's also the easiest
club to hit ever made. The Perfect Club flies as far or farther than the
clubs it replaces and it's shorter in length, which leads to more consistent
ball striking. The Perfect Club is played in the middle of your stance like
a short iron and instantly induces a strong sense of confidence which
carries over to every other club in your bag.” The voice came over in deep
baritone. The “click” I heard in the kitchen and mistook for a sound
happening in front of my house, was the “perfect club” striking a golf ball
on television. Was this the best audio ever recorded for a commercial?
Overall, it was quite good, but I wouldn’t go nearly that far. The “click,”
however was astoundingly well reproduced and really put a smile on my face.
How unlikely, how almost ridiculous, but what an accomplishment for the
engineers at Dynaudio, huh?

The speakers seemed to be gaining momentum. After the
initial transition, which left me a bit cold, I was really beginning to warm
up to the 82s. I had thrown some CDs on here and there, but had yet to sit
down and listen to an entire CD. I figured the SACD of Pink Floyd’s Dark
Side of the Moon was a good initiation, so I fired it up. Just as I
noted on the first day I had them, I was struck by the great presence and
pace of the speaker’s delivery. Jack Johnson’s “Brushfire Fairytales” is a
fabulous demonstration CD as it is filled with tons of acoustic guitar and
well-miked vocals. The 82s served this recording especially well, and I
noted the separation and distinctions within the mix were laid bare, much to
my enjoyment.

I did have some criticisms of music playback with the
speakers, which were so minor, their presence was only gradually realized.
The 82s failed to pressurize my large room in the way that seemed effortless
for the bigger Revels. I loved the tight, punchy bass response of the 82s,
but on certain music, the F30s build a more solid foundation. Whether that
foundation is entirely accurate is something I cannot answer, but it is
something I very much enjoy.

Another area in which I felt the 82s fell short was in
their midrange resolution. Compared to what they offered across the rest of
the frequency range, the upper midrange had a slight blurriness to it.
Initially, I thought it was in the recordings, but it became relatively easy
to identify after a while, so it seemed inherent to the speaker. Please
don’t misunderstand me; the 82s offer resolution which is among the best I
have heard under $5000. I seriously considered purchasing the review pair
until I realized that my tastes require a bit more transparency in the
midrange. I was disappointed until I remembered that the Audience is the
entry-level line of Dynaudio speakers. Most manufacturers would be lucky to
have this competent of a speaker as its top of the line offering. Michael
Manousselis, Director of Sales & Marketing for Dynaudio USA, suggested that
the next level up, the newly-designed Contour, would probably be exactly
what I was looking for as it bests the 82 in critical areas such as
transparency, soundstaging, and imaging. I look forward to hearing it.

One other note that I made involved the spikes supplied
with the speakers. They are of the long, thin variety, which may or may not
be to your liking. I found them difficult to work with as some of them
allowed for more insertion into the bottom of the speaker than others.
Whether it’s attributable to the threading on the actual spike itself or the
receptacle under the speaker, I’m not sure. I would, however, say that the
classy looks of the plinth under the speaker are somewhat undone by the
wimpy (yes, that’s a technical term) looking and feeling spikes. I decided
not to monkey (my technical dictionary is getting quite a workout) with them
as I have hardwood floors and managed to seat them on level ground.

Conclusions

The Dynaudio Audience 82s do not editorialize. They
appreciate a high quality source and will reward you, the listener, in
kind. This level of transparency is vital because it not only allows you to
change out equipment and hear the results, but also reveals the strengths
and shortcomings of your various sources. Despite its modest, traditional
form factor, it speaks with a bold, engaging voice, falling short only when
compared with much more expensive competition. If you appreciate this type
of honesty in a speaker, the Dynaudios are certain to be your flavor.